http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=208451600285121150972.0004be0c65aeee9955e5d&msa=0&ll=36.995287,-122.05596&spn=0.029374,0.055747
The purpose of this map is to help outsiders view the places that UC Sanata Cruz students explore everyday and to get a taste for this unique campus and colorful town. The problem that I immediately came across was that this map is unique and tailored to my experiences. Not EVERY student that attends UCSC visits all these places or tries all these foods. There are so many gaps and discrepancies that another student would recognize and neogeographers rarely recognize this and just share what they know. I don't claim to know everything about Santa Cruz, but just laid out a list of locations and activities that were popular when I was there. I'm probably not the first to map this campus and probably wont be the last, and this opens up enormous potential for layering multiple experiences that portrays a broader picture of what this campus is all about. For the purposes of the map I produced, Google maps worked like a charm and the satellite view made it simple to recognize unique landmarks.
Although neogeography offers unique benefits it also carries negative implications. Probably the most outstanding is that ANYONE can create a map with this toolkit. And as a geography major I am baffled at how terrible most people are with directions or identifying specific places on a map. Someone with very little knowledge can place markers and routes all over a map that could be completely wrong and claim it to be entirely accurate. It is up to the viewer to use discretion since there is no review process or screening. Another pitfall is the matter of opinion. I know maps convey countless opinions and are biased in many ways, but most maps that are produced are created by institutions or professionals with reputations. The faceless creation of any kind of map online can lead to very hateful or slanderous cartography from those who feel like labeling or redlining entire areas negatively. The important lesson to take away from neogeography is that it has enormous potential if used responsibly and viewed with discretion.
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